TY - JOUR
T1 - Finite Element Analysis of Fracture Fixation
AU - Lewis, Gregory S.
AU - Mischler, Dominic
AU - Wee, Hwabok
AU - Reid, J. Spence
AU - Varga, Peter
N1 - Funding Information:
GSL, HW, and JSR were supported by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (1R01EB029207-01). DM and PV were supported by the AO Foundation via the AOTRAUMA Network (Grant No.: AR 2018/01).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.
PY - 2021/8
Y1 - 2021/8
N2 - Purpose of Review: Fracture fixation aims to provide stability and promote healing, but remains challenging in unstable and osteoporotic fractures with increased risk of construct failure and nonunion. The first part of this article reviews the clinical motivation behind finite element analysis of fracture fixation, its strengths and weaknesses, how models are developed and validated, and how outputs are typically interpreted. The second part reviews recent modeling studies of the femur and proximal humerus, areas with particular relevance to fragility fractures. Recent Findings: There is some consensus in the literature around how certain modeling aspects are pragmatically formulated, including bone and implant geometries, meshing, material properties, interactions, and loads and boundary conditions. Studies most often focus on predicted implant stress, bone strain surrounding screws, or interfragmentary displacements. However, most models are not rigorously validated. Summary: With refined modeling methods, improved validation efforts, and large-scale systematic analyses, finite element analysis is poised to advance the understanding of fracture fixation failure, enable optimization of implant designs, and improve surgical guidance.
AB - Purpose of Review: Fracture fixation aims to provide stability and promote healing, but remains challenging in unstable and osteoporotic fractures with increased risk of construct failure and nonunion. The first part of this article reviews the clinical motivation behind finite element analysis of fracture fixation, its strengths and weaknesses, how models are developed and validated, and how outputs are typically interpreted. The second part reviews recent modeling studies of the femur and proximal humerus, areas with particular relevance to fragility fractures. Recent Findings: There is some consensus in the literature around how certain modeling aspects are pragmatically formulated, including bone and implant geometries, meshing, material properties, interactions, and loads and boundary conditions. Studies most often focus on predicted implant stress, bone strain surrounding screws, or interfragmentary displacements. However, most models are not rigorously validated. Summary: With refined modeling methods, improved validation efforts, and large-scale systematic analyses, finite element analysis is poised to advance the understanding of fracture fixation failure, enable optimization of implant designs, and improve surgical guidance.
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U2 - 10.1007/s11914-021-00690-y
DO - 10.1007/s11914-021-00690-y
M3 - Review article
C2 - 34185266
AN - SCOPUS:85109032165
SN - 1544-1873
VL - 19
SP - 403
EP - 416
JO - Current Osteoporosis Reports
JF - Current Osteoporosis Reports
IS - 4
ER -